UPDATED: hold the clippers. the frenchie barber shop.

a couple weeks ago i blogged about shaving your french bulldog… well, i recently got new information and need to retract my previous post.yesterday i took huntie to our neighborhood’s all-natural pet store – Wag & Wash – and got a bit of a lecture. the lead groomer said she was shocked to see a french bulldog on the books and then told me why.

apparently, the undercoat of already short hair dogs is critical to their system. the undercoat acts as the insulator layer (warming & cooling) and their coat is the only line of defense to protect their skin from sunburn and other natural elements.

she said it appeared that hunter’s coat had grown back in okay from his first shave, but that she’s seen cases where the dog’s coat doesn’t and they’re left with skin allergies and terrible sunburns. in fact, she said that if i really wanted to get him shaved i’d need to sign a consent waiver – that’s how much responsible groomers urge against it.

needless to say, we opted against the shave and she used natural products to give him a deep shampoo, brushing and de-shedding treatment. once i was home, i googled “pet shaving” and all the top articles are the reasons to NOT shave your pet. whoops!

p.s. the wag & wash was a great deal: $35 for a full spa treatment (bath, de-shedding, dry & brush, ears cleaned, anals squeezed & nails clipped).